Lithuanian cancer patient misses UK disability payments over disputed paperwork

A Lithuanian woman who returned from the United Kingdom after developing cancer has been unable to receive disability payments from the UK, LRT reported, after the two countries’ authorities gave conflicting accounts of her application.

The woman spent a decade in the UK and applied for disability benefits through Lithuania’s state social insurance agency, Sodra, seeking payments from both countries because of her work record abroad. She received only a few hundred euros a month from Lithuania and said she waited a year without an explanation for the UK decision.

With help from a lawyer, she contacted the UK on May 12. The response said she was not entitled to payments because Sodra had reported that she was receiving no benefits in Lithuania. Sodra later told her it had not sent that information, but had informed the UK that she had applied for disability support. The woman also complained to the UK, which reopened its review of the claim.

Lawyer Sandra Paulauskė-Budriūnė said she had heard from dozens of people facing difficulties claiming UK benefits. She said documents can describe a person as having only applied for disability support in Lithuania, rather than having been granted it, leading the UK to stop examining their claims. She estimated that applicants could miss out on about €6,000 in support during the first year. Payments can start at about £98 a week and rise to around £160 a week for people who move into a second-stage support group, she said.

The lawyer said Sodra had sent seven inquiries to the UK without receiving a response, while a personal inquiry received a reply within 10 days. Sodra rejected criticism that its documents were misleading, saying officials use standard wording and that a UK specialist would be at fault if they interpreted an application notice as meaning that Lithuania paid no pension.

Sodra said exchanging information about overseas work records and benefit claims can take time. Replies from Norway can take up to 20 months, while the usual wait for a response from the UK is up to four months.